Grand Valley State University Top Questions

Grand Valley is a timeless school that does nothing but care for its students. I believe that it is one of the best schools for getting the most out of the money that you pay, and that it is truly all about making sure that every student has the opportunity to succeed. Most of the professors are great, and want to help. I did not look into colleges too much before I picked one. I was undecided and knew that I wanted to get away from home, so I picked the first school that I liked. Honestly though, I regret that decision. I am not sure if Grand Valley is the place for me, but it isn't the school's doing. It is very large, so it is hard as someone who doesn't party to get to know people, so life can get lonely. I also don't think that the school has very high standards, so I feel like it's no big deal to get accepted there. Overall though, they keep the campus beautiful, and make sure that you have all of the resources you need to succeed.

As cliche as it ma sound, this school is perfect for me. The school is rapidly growing but is still the perfect size! At first I was unsure about campus being in its own circumference rather than intertwined with a city, but it makes for a better chance to meet people! I have never been to another campus as clean as Grand Valley, its a wonderful environment to be a part of. Also being close to the big city of Grand Rapids makes for a lot of fun weekends!

Overall Grand Valley is one of the best schools in the area. The faculty is very friendly and focused on making sure that you are understanding the material. There are also many on-campus resources, such as the math center, and the writing center that students should take full advantage of. While the first few weeks attending this school seemed intimaidating, once I opened myself up to others, I was able to make many friends, and connect more with people. Even if your class is a large lecture class - simply talk with your neighbor or speak more often in class. Not only will the professor remember you better, but other students will as well. The amount of opportunites available at this school are endless. The only problems that I have experienced concern school pride and the bus system. While many Lakers are proud of their school, it's harder to show this pride without an official rival. I'm sure many students would like to have a declared rival in order to showcase their pride. The bus system can also be problematic, especially during the first few weeks of the semester. Buses - particularly the Connector bus, route 50, can be crowded. At times, you will have to wait for the next bus because there is simply no room left for you on the bus. This school is large, with over 24,000 students, but never see it's large campus as a setback, at it can allow for more opportunities and connections that one would not necessarily find in an otherwise smaller school.

The best thing about GVSU is the variety. I also think GVSU is the perfect size, however they could offer more classes on the Pew campus. Allendale isn't a college town at all, but the Pew campus is in downtown Grand Rapids (which is a great city). GVSU is unusual in the variety of people, classes, and clubs we have. There is an obvious majority on campus, but chances are there are a ton of people you'd get along with well if you put a little effort into it. The whole liberal arts mentality they have here is nice--you don't feel as rushed to find a major. Once and a while you get a bad professor, but the professors that do care make up for the not-so-good ones. A lot of them are very passionate about teaching! Overall, I'm pretty happy at GVSU. The small classes, wide variety of options, and the awesome people I met, and dedicated professors make it a great college!

The best thing about GVSU is the variety. Even though there is a lot of focus on athletics, I really do feel like they are trying to create a diverse campus. It does sometimes get disheartening, being surrounded by people that I don't identify with. West Michigan is know for it's conservative and religious people, and that does tend to spill over to Grand Valley. This could either be a pro or a con, depending on who you are. I think GVSU is the perfect size, however they could offer more classes on the Pew campus. Allendale isn't a college town at all, but the Pew campus is in downtown Grand Rapids (which is a great city!) I do think GVSU is unusual in the variety of people, classes, and clubs we have. There is an obvious majority on campus, but chances are there are a ton of people you'd get along with well if you put a little effort into it. The whole liberal arts mentality they have here is nice--you don't feel as rushed to find a major. Once and a while you get a bad professor, but the professors that do care make up for the not-so-good ones. A lot of them are very passionate about teaching! Overall, I'm pretty happy at GVSU. The small classes, wide variety of options, and the awesome people I met, and dedicated professors make it a great college!

My first impression of Grand Valley the first time I visited was "It looks really pretty and it's very clean." Well, it still is. They campus is very well kept up, the campus has very good security (at times too much), and I feel relaxed and safe here. The Allendale campus is a little bit off-set from the city of Grand Rapids but if you take the 50 Rapid to downtown, there is always plenty to see and do. I really like the size of Grand Valley and the fact that the campus is split up. It gives you the choice of what atmosphere you like living and learning in. I personally love both of the campuses. You can walk across the entire Allendale campus in about 15-20 minutes (10 minutes with a bike).

I think that Grand Valley State University provides students with the resources and tools they need for big successes without drowning out their individual voices as happens at larger schools far too often. Grand Vallwy has offered me many great opportunities for success, such as their accelerated Honors program, which lets me skip many general education classes while studying interesting topics with students who are actually interested in what they're learning, while allowing me to live in spacious, fully furnished on-campus apartmentsas a freshman. GVSU also offers free paper-writing assistance at its Writing Center and online, free tutoring in all major classes, study buddy programs, and numerous free lab facilities. But even with all of the benefits of a larger, wealthy college, GVSU has never felt too big to me. My largest class ever on campus was only about 60 strong, and I would say my average class size is about 20 students. I've also never felt unsafe on campus. You can walk from one end to the other in 15 minutes, and the whole way is lit. The campus is close enough to town to be exciting (with free buses taking students downtown until midnight), but far enough out of town to be safe and relaxed. Grand Valley State University: small town feel: big results.

I absolutely adore Grand Valley State University. Attending this school has opened my eyes to the outside world and helped me to broaden my horizons while gaining more confidence in myself and my beliefs. While there are approximately 25,000 students at Grand Valley, class sizes are kept fairly small (Most of my classes are around 40 students) so you're able to get the big university feel while getting the one-on-one attention you're used to from high school. President Haas (the head of GVSU) makes a point to keep himself involved, and you frequently receive emails from him and can go to him with any issues you may have. School pride is definitely a large part of Grand Valley, and students really get into the spirit. Students receive free tickets to all GVSU sporting events and they often give out prizes or have contests related to school spirit, so it's both fun and rewarding to get fired up about your team.

The best thing about GVSU is the variety. Even though there is a lot of focus on athletics, I really do feel like they are trying to create a diverse campus. It does sometimes get disheartening, being surrounded by people that I don't identify with. West Michigan is know for it's conservative and religious people, and that does tend to spill over to Grand Valley. This could either be a pro or a con, depending on who you are. I think GVSU is the perfect size, however they could offer more classes on the Pew campus. Allendale isn't a college town at all, but the Pew campus is in downtown Grand Rapids (which is a great city!) There's not a ton of school pride, but I feel like that is starting to change for the better. Recently, GVSU adopted a new gender-neutral housing policy, which is amazing. I do think GVSU is unusual in the variety of people, classes, and clubs we have. There is an obvious majority on campus, but chances are there are a ton of people you'd get along with well if you put a little effort into it. The whole liberal arts mentality they have here is nice--you don't feel as rushed to find a major. Once and a while you get an awful professor, but the professors that do care make up for the not-so-good ones. A lot of them are very passionate about teaching! Overall, I'm pretty happy at GVSU. The small classes, wide variety of options, and the awesome people I met, and dedicated professors make it a great college!

Amazing professors, small class sizes, perfect campus size (not to mention how pretty it is), a ton of opportunities to get involved...It's fantastic.